Magistrate arrested for rape

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Mchinji

Malawi police in Mzimba have arrested third grade magistrate Tobias Sibale of Enjisweni magistrate court in the district on suspicions that he attempted to rape Patricia Jere in November this year.

Police publicist for the district, Constable Kanjauso, confirmed the news to Malawi24 on Friday and said the magistrate is currently in the hands of Mzimba police waiting to answer charges of indecent assault.

Information gathered by this publication from relatives of Jere shows that the magistrate has been proposing to the victim for over four years now but because she is a married woman she kept rejecting his advances.

crime (2)“Her husband stays away thus the magistrate took it as an advantage to propose to her. Most of the times he used to call her to his office to discuss the same issue but the woman kept telling us that she always rejected the proposal,” said Lizzie Mlotha, her cousin.

She added that the magistrate kept assuring the woman of a happy marriage and more rewards if she accepted his proposal but Jere kept the vow she made with her husband.

“On this day like usual, he called her again to his office where after the woman remained adamant on her decision, the magistrate thought of using force to make love to her. He caressed her everywhere such that the woman got furious and shouted for people to rescue her from the unwanted sex,” she added.

It is said that when the woman shouted for help, the magistrate threatened her with legal action on the basis that her conduct was likely to dent the image of the judiciary in the country.

However, the magistrate is said to have failed to ease his sex drive on the woman who escaped.

After she arrived home, Jere narrated the ordeal to her beloved husband who reported the case to police.

The law enforcers later nabbed the magistrate on charges of indecent assault because he touched the woman’s private parts without permission.

“We wonder why they have only charged him with indecent assault; don’t Malawian laws have punishments for attempted rape? We still believe he wanted to rape her,” said Mlotha.

The culprit hails from Temwamkondo area in Chitipa district.

This is happening barely a few days after a police officer was arrested in the same district on suspicions that he raped a woman.